15[20:04] Piu takes back to the night, drifting from rooftop to rooftop like a ghost. Useful meeting with the peculiar Tephen, and a viable lead on a new task. Where does she carry it? [20:05] 14Home again, home again. Tephen is family, and family is important, but Caedus is her boss and he's the one who decides if she's cleared for a hit or not. 15[20:06] Daizo bursts out into that same night with rather more urgency, with a sight to churn the stomach and a word to burn the brain. Furia. He takes to the streets outside the little temple, heading for... what? For whom? [20:07] 10Back to the ship. Ratel needs to know about an eyewitness to Furia's deeds, and perhaps Caxi can keep Deled alive and sane long enough to relay the tale. [20:09] 14It's probably wise to figure out if Dryas would react...violently...to Cynis Lena's passing, since Dryas has at least half a brain and is going to immediately know why her cousin dropped dead just after the Fangs rolled into town. [20:09] 14They didn't seem to know each other when they met in the hall. 15[20:11] Piu sees Caedus quite quickly, at the gated, guarded entrance to the Inner City, where the Commodore is trying to convince the guards that, yes, the entire dozens-strong party of rowdy, tired sailors is with her, and they are on the list. How does she get his attention? [20:11] 10Oh, is that where they are? Change of plans.  15[20:12] Daizo heads for the ship first, and doesn't find the Commodore, but does find Caxi, sitting on deck with Garnet. No sign of Sadako. Caxi's got the jar in her lap and they're passing a bottle back and forth. [20:13] 14She's currently wearing Silk Shadow and mask, so unless he can find an excuse to slip away, she doesn't. She'll give him their standard nightingale call to signal she's around and let him decide. If not, she'll head to her new lodgings to get changed, then rejoin them at the gate. 15[20:14] Ratel's surprised to see Piu. "Oh, there you are. We're just getting settled in. You have something to wear?" [20:16] 10Good enough. Despite having sprinted the entire way, Daizo's barely breathing hard. "We've got a lead on Furia, but I don't know how much longer this man is going to live. He should be dead three times already." [20:16] "Caxi… do you have another miracle in you?" 15[20:17] Caxi: "Dead how? What's wrong with him?" [20:17] "The lead is that Furia chopped off his arms and legs." 15[20:17] Caxi: "Goodness." [20:18] 4Piu grins. "Always. How scandalous do weddings out here let you get?" 15[20:20] She comes to a standing position, eyes lowered and darting as if she'd dropped something on deck. "We... can't really leave Lady Garnet alone, can we?" 15[20:21] "Perhaps you should take her to the others, and tell me where he is." [20:21] 10Daizo: "It's only the Blood that's kept him alive this long. He's in a temple clinic—it looks like a slaughterhouse, he's mad with pain—" 10Daizo nods. "All right. We were supposed to meet up in the inner city." [20:23] "And, er. I left Seiri behind in my haste. She can fill you in on the rest." 15[20:23] Garnet: "You left her there? No, I don't want to go to the palace. Bring me where she is." 15[20:24] Caxi, quickly: "I don't think that's wise, Lady Garnet." [20:25] 10Daizo's lifting the jar, but there's something in Caxi's voice that gives him pause.  15[20:26] Ratel: "Oh, who cares? Thresholder custom is impenetrable at the best of times and given this..." she gestures past the gate where Piu can see a human skeleton, dressed in a silvery smock and small round hat, pushing a broom up the courtyard. 15[20:26] "I think we can waive the morals clause." [20:28] 4Piu: "Short hem it is then!" 15[20:31] Dryas is down in the hold of her ship, with her captain and her cargo. But unless Moray shows up right now, there's not much more she can do here. Does she want to rest a while? If not, where does the night take her? 15[20:33] Zhangyu is elsewhere entirely, in a dark and narrow street running through a pauper's row, with little foot traffic and weak, flickering lights in the open-air windows. Sadako is looking at him past her hanging hair, waiting for him to explain where they're going or what they're doing. [20:37] 10Daizo: "No, Garnet's right. It makes no sense for us to split up here. Plus, I intend to hear what Deled has to say with my own ears. Maybe I can talk to him—I knew the man, as much of a colossal prick as he was—is." [20:38] 6He had a destination in mind, at the start, but made a few detours. Are they in a secluded enough location for a spar? 15[20:38] Caxi opens her mouth, and then closes it again, eyes still restless. She's very deep in thought. 15[20:39] Samperson: "If I may, Commodore, I think you've got this matter well in hand. Let me see go get the room assignments to distribute among the crew." 15[20:40] Ratel, visibly trying to guess where the hemline will be on Piu's thigh: "Huh? Yeah, whatever. Good idea." 15[20:41] Samperson: "Lady Piu, could you help me please?" [20:41] 4Piu will stick around slightly longer so it's not as obvious where she's going, or at least it appears like she's trying not to be obvious about that. She'll let Ratel guess at why. 15[20:41] Ratel scoffs, but her face settles into a rueful smile as Piu departs. [20:42] 4And after all, there's cover to keep, and a new bed to test-- [20:42] 14--but when that's done it's to business. 15[20:43] There's plenty of room to fight and not be in anyone's way. 'Secluded' is kind of a relative term when people are packed as tightly as this, but there are little squares with empty market stalls where Zhangyu can't meet any poor peoples' eyes directly through their windows. [20:44] "Cynis Lena's an incompetent, but a pretty one, and with a powerful mother. I was somewhat hoping our business here wouldn't be a family member of my hearth, too." 15[20:44] Caedus: "Oh, I'm already dreading going back to the cabins. The cots are bad enough, but having all this room to maneuver... ah. Yes. Tephen wants her dead?" [20:45] "Yes. I accepted the contract because that's my place, but I'm hoping maybe we can bargain him down to just getting her out of his hair, or something." 15[20:46] Caedus: "Did he say why he needs her dead? Maybe we can provide an alternate solution." [20:47] 07Dryas: "I leave the songbird entrusted to your care." 07She gives the Leftenant one last, searching gaze before rushing back to the deck, and then - to the Inner City aboard Diamond Weapon. [20:47] "She's feeding Anathema to Skullstone, apparently. Whatever that means. Nothing good." 15[20:47] Caedus: "Like Dryas is?" [20:47] "And in fairness to him, I do believe he specifically said 'gone,' so perhaps he's got flexibility." [20:49] 10Daizo: "What you're going to do. Is it dangerous? To Seiri? Garnet? Me?" [20:51] 6Right. That's the spot. Or one of-- whatever. "Seiri." 6He launches himself at Sadako. "What do you intend?" 6He is already in an attacker's stance, which Sadako would recognize by now. 15[20:51] Caxi's head snaps up. "What? No. It's not dangerous to anyone. But if you want to have a useful conversation with him he needs to *live*, and not just be made comfortable. Which means regrowing the limbs." [20:52] 14Piu: "Yes, though Dryas's involvement is a bit more complicated. I think. I need to check in with her on that." [20:52] 07Returning to the palace, Dryas immediately seeks out any sort of hot spring, spa, or bath. 15[20:52] Caxi: "The solution is not strictly surgical. I shouldn't need any help. Neither you nor Garnet are in any danger. But..." 15[20:54] The baths in the Royal Palace of the House of Mox are quite sumptuous! Nothing like you get in real civilization, of course, but as barbarian fiefs go Dryas has seen a lot worse. If you wanted an honest soak in Chiaroscuro, for instance, you basically had to disguise yourself as a member of the Tri-Khan's harem. Here the worst thing you have to deal with is the odd skeletal janitor. 15[20:55] Sadako: "What the f--" she's completely blindsided. 15[20:56] Caedus: "That's a potential angle, at least. If you want her in, bring her all the way in. Get her to seize Lena's position and force her to slink off in... do they even feel shame, do you think?" [20:56] 10Daizo: "How is it possible? Even a single limb… even the most esoteric treatments I've heard of could take months or years…" [20:56] 14Piu: "Sure. The sex doesn't hit the same without it." [20:57] "Remorse, regret...not so sure about those." [20:57] "I'll get on it." 15[20:57] Caedus chuckles. "Bonus points if you can convince her it was her idea." [20:57] 07She gives herself an hour - and informs a page, a human one if at all possible, of her whereabouts in case anyone comes looking for her. The Tri-Kahn, now that was someone you know where you stood with. And skeletal janitors? They don't even have those in Sijan, do they? What kind of place is this? [20:57] "And if Tephen does insist on blood -- and you clear it -- well, I'll draw up those plans too." 15[20:58] Caedus: "How bad's his office? It sounds like I need to pay him a visit." [20:58] 14Piu sighs. "It's fine. A bit cluttered. ...He's got a kid's drawing taped up on the wall, which I didn't expect." 15[20:59] Caedus: "What, like a trophy?" [21:00] "No. Like a parent proud of their child's school project." [21:00] 4She runs a hand idly down his chest. "Might not be his, though." [21:00] "Though I dunno who else's it'd be." 15[21:01] Caedus: "Maybe I'll run that down, too. Could need a pinch point on him if he gets disagreeable." [21:02] 4She sighs. "Well, thinking about that ruins the mood. And I've got a wedding rehearsal to prepare for." 4She'll stand and...is there an in-room bath she can begin drawing? 15[21:02] There aren't. Looks like Piu is headed to the palace baths if she wants one. [21:08] 4Poor Caedus. That means she has to put on some clothes. 15[21:11] He makes no effort to conceal his disappointment. [21:13] 4They'll have time later, after the rehearsal. Finally, a bed with proper posts for... Piu picks out a sexy but not pornographic outfit for after the showers, a simple shift for the walk over, and goes to freshen up. [21:15] 10Daizo turns to Caxi and lays a hand on her shoulder. "You made me promise that I would never again apologize to you. You don't need to apologize to me either, for anything you've done or will do." [21:15] "Whatever else, we're colleagues, right? It took me far too long to understand that. And after we've just begun to be honest with each other… will you turn me away now?" [21:16] 4Is it a big bath or a bunch of small private ones? Piu and Dryas might be in the same room if it's the former. 15[21:17] It is the former, and they are. [21:17] 07Dryas is submerged up to her neck in hot water and is humming gently to herself - if Piu doesn't see her, she can likely hear her over the quiet sounds of water and whatever jingly noises the skeletal servants might make. Slices of some kind of green vegetable cover her eyes. A few orchid blossoms are visibly sprouting among her chestnut brown locks. [21:18] 4Piu will get as close to joining her as hearth-sisterhood will allow. Dryas will know her arrival by the soft verbalization of "Ugh!" 4as a skeleton passes by. [21:18] 4She doesn't cannonball into the water -- that would be rude -- but there is a slight bit of splashing. 15[21:19] Caxi looks up at Daizo, eyes darting along his face like they did the ground a moment before. Her hand creeps up to her own shoulder to close around his wrist. "...heh. Aheh." She looks away suddenly, as if movement caught her attention, and quickly drags the heel of her other hand over her eye. There must've been something in it. 15[21:19] Without looking back: "...you're right, of course. How very silly of me." [21:19] "Piu? Are you alone?" 07Dryas speaks unusually softly, and barely moves a muscle. [21:20] 4Piu, also softly: "Yeah!" 14Then: "Why are we whispering!" [21:20] *4Then 15[21:21] "Just a moment." Caxi retreats below decks and comes back up with heavy teak box under one arm, and something bulky and rattling dangling from her other hand that doesn't look like her medicine bag. "Lead on, darling." [21:22] 07Dryas: "This could be my last moment of true relaxation for a very, very, long time." [21:22] 4Piu: "Mmmm..." [21:23] "I won't ruin it for you then! But skeletons might." [21:23] 10Daizo hoists up the jar, and they'll all carry their burdens into the city. [21:24] 07Dryas: "I don't want to look at them. Dreadful. Is this what happens, without...?" 15[21:24] Sadako is able to recover quickly enough that she and Zhangyu are arm-to-arm. She's gotten so much stronger in such a short time... he's reflecting on this when someone shouts in Seatongue and a dark shape corkscrews through the air to land right on top of him, sending both him and the shape to the ground. They roll in the dirt for a moment and then Zhangyu is 15[21:24] face to face with a mask, done in reds, whites, and golds, stylized to look like the head-on visage of a bird of prey. [21:25] 4Piu: "Without what, the Immaculates? Feh. It's not a lack of religion, just a presence of spooky death wizards." [21:27] 6Zhangyu: "We... are really going to have to... ... ...Hayabusa??" [21:28] 07Dryas: "It's concerning. Anyway, I'm going to pawn off those trinkets we got. We're amassing a treasury now and should grow the Garden. Maybe another ship? Or some specialists, to help at our last port-of-call? What do you suppose?" 15[21:29] Seiri's pacing outside the shrine when the trio arrives. She looks like she's had a couple panic attacks since Daizo ran downstairs, ran back out, and then didn't return for over half an hour. Garnet instantly sweeps her into a protective hug. "What happened?" asks Garnet. "What did you see?" 15[21:29] Seiri, stunned twice over, looks helplessly at Daizo from within Garnet's embrace. 15[21:29] The mysterious masked man: [21:30] 10Daizo: "Nothing, I didn't take her down to the sickroom with me—" [21:30] 4Piu: "I suppose...that I'm interested in Cynis Lena, and her business in Brightwork. From a Garden perspective." [21:31] "But for the love of Jylis don't go down there now, Seiri." 15[21:31] Caxi: "Give her the jar. You and Garnet should keep watch." [21:32] 07Dryas: "I would not recommend retaining her," 07she responds diplomatically. 15[21:32] The first sentence was to Daizo, the second to Seiri. [21:32] 6Zhangyu: "Tepet Zhangyu, training a student. Unorthodox, I admit-- are you who you claim to be?" [21:32] 4Piu: "Bodease isn't a fan either, I don't think. You two aren't close or anything, right?" 15[21:35] says Hayabusa, for if it is not he the mask is so distinctive that it must be an intentional disguise, [21:35] "Bodease? I'm surprised a slave was so candid with you." 07Didn't someone say he'd been a personal gift of the matriarchs? What is Falen up to in all this? [21:36] 4Piu: "I have my ways! And people don't have to say things to say things." [21:36] 4Now it's her turn to whisper. "You know there's rumors Lena's dealing in Anathema?" [21:38] 10Daizo sets the jar down before Seiri, and mentally kicks himself for not having foreseen what running out of here like an agata out of hell would have done to the girl.  [21:39] 07Dryas doesn't say anything for a long while. Instead, her arm slowly rises out of the water to lift one of the fruit slices, and a single green eye rolls around the room before peering at Piu: "Go on." [21:39] "To Skullstone. I mean, that makes sense, right? Look around. Maybe the wedding's cover for something..." [21:40] 6Zhangyu: "Hayabua-sensei." 6And, woah that is a Thing. "Will you accompany us back to the boat? I intended to teach Sadako, but this is- well. I cannot pass this up." [21:40] 6Hayabusa* 15[21:41] Sadako: "Huh?" [21:42] 6Zhangyu: "You know how I know Mantis style? This guy knows Falcon style and is better at that than I am at Mantis." 15[21:42] The coast is clear, Dryas can tell. 15[21:42] Sadako, indignantly: "No way." 15[21:42] "Why did he attack you then?" [21:44] 6Zhangyu, blandly: "Thought I was attacking you." [21:45] 07Dryas sighs. "This is crucial, and upsetting, information. We have precious little time to come up with, and execute, a plan before I'm as complicit as she is." 15[21:45] Caxi and Daizo have to clear the nuns and monks tending Deled away, but they do without too much trouble. Big fuckoff guy with wings is hard to stand up to. Caxi raises a finger, and her hair flutters. Best not to speak just yet. She's going to use a tincture of opium to put him to sleep. Daizo should keep his eyes covered until he is. 15[21:46] Sadako: "You were." [21:46] 4Innocently: "So, I ask again...you two aren't close, are ya?" [21:47] 07Dryas: "It is not as simple as that. Ratel knows I'm up to something here. She has threatened to take it to Cynis Falen if I make any waves here. Have you heard the news that she's on safari out West somewhere?" [21:47] 6Zhangyu: "I had a reason. Sorry." [21:47] 07Dryas: "And Lena is Falen's daughter." [21:47] 4Piu frowns. "Ratel? Ugh. I told you we needed a plan for her..." [21:48] "Keep your eyes open for surprise attacks." [21:48] 10Yeah, it's… not a great sight. The blood is less disturbing than the torso thrashing in the bed like some kind of human maggot.  15[21:49] Caxi sticks the needle right in Deled's neck. He goes still quickly. [21:49] 4Piu: "Basically what we need to do is make Ratel made at Lena, so that Ratel doesn't mind if we get Lena shipped off on the next boat to mommy." [21:50] *mad 15[21:50] Caxi: "How did he get *anywhere* like this?" [21:50] "Now, Lena sounds like a dumb catty bitch, so maybe she'll take care of that herself at the rehearsal..." 15[21:51] She opens the box, revealing a black leatherbound book scarcely small enough to fit in Daizo's pocket, and a knife of polished black stone. Both are resting on velvet like one might use to display diamonds. [21:51] 10Daizo: "Don't know. We can find out from the monks once he's stable." [21:52] 07Dryas: "Falen might be too soft on her. Or worse.... We need to find out what Lena knows, how far it goes. Then we can attack it at the root." 15[21:52] Caxi: "Mmmhmm." She takes the knife in her hands, presses it to her forehead, and rakes it along the length of Deled's torso, splitting him open in a single stroke. [21:53] 4Piu: "Sounds like I'm up...does she prefer girls?" 15[21:53] Sadako: "So... now what." [21:56] 10Daizo's wordless cry lasts only a moment before he claps his hands over his mouth. [21:56] 6Zhangyu: "Depends on Hayabusa-sensei. Either way, I keep teaching you... if you still want to learn?" 6He is weirdly unsure at the end of that. [21:57] 07Dryas ponders. "You think she'd fall for something that straightforward? Actually, she might... the one thing I remember clearly is she isn't very bright - except at getting other people to take the blame for her failures." [21:57] 10Focus. Watch. Pay attention. Don't shriek like a child with their first broken bone. [21:58] 4Piu: "I'm very convincing. I just don't like using sex too much with marks, because sometimes I get attached to them, and we end up with Commodore Ratel." [22:00] 07Dryas removes the other fruit slice and stares at her Hearth-Sister. "What?" 15[22:00] Caxi peers in on the monk's breathing guts, lips pursed. Without looking she reaches over to the rattling bundle and pulls the cloth off what turns out to be a birdcage big enough to hold three adult doves on perches inside. [22:01] "She was not V'Neef's first choice...but I can pretty much get her to do whatever I want, within reason, given enough reps in the bedroom. So I made a convincing argument for the Commodore to remain attached to our venture!" 4Piu elides what the other outcome for Ratel would have been if she hadn't. [22:05] 10Daizo eyes the doves. A sacrificial ritual? [22:07] 07Dryas sighs again. Serenity... now. "You are an interesting person, V'Neef Piu. I agree we have to investigate Lena immediately. We also have to prepare for what to do when the Keystone arrives. And what to do about the wedding." [22:09] 4Piu: "Oh right, Moray. What do you wanna do about him?" 15[22:10] Gingerly turning the little book page by page, Caxi doesn't look up. "Don't get attached to the birds." Ah! Seems she found the right pages - the text on the left side is unreadable and splotchy, but the print opposite it is immaculate - a young woman with the delicate legs of a deer stands at the fore of a winding path that leads into a gate held open by twisted spires, a riot of 15[22:10] shadow beyond, which even the hateful sun above (rendered as a scowling man with a crooked sword and six burning wings) cannot dispel. [22:11] 07Dryas: "Nn Tloc thinks he's crazy. But he'll be expecting a delivery." [22:11] 10A prickling on the back of his neck. They're not alone. [22:11] 4Piu: "Crazy guys like to posture. Can make them weak. We gonna kill him?" 15[22:11] Sadako: "Duh!! What are we doing here? Come on." She points at Hayabusa. "You coming?" 15[22:12] Hayabusa watches the exchange raptly. [22:12] 4Piu is polite about Dryas's cousin, but much more direct about trash like Moray. [22:14] 07Dryas: "I'd love nothing more. But even supposing we could, I'm not sure we could escape with our lives. And any word of our betrayal will get back to Abalone - probably faster than we will."w [22:15] 4Piu: "Well, if he's crazy, he won't be placated by smiling and eating shit." [22:15] "But it's your call babe." 15[22:18] Daizo peers over Caxi's shoulder as she begins to intone: The print depicts the greater demon Mara, recourse of magicians, quiet huntress of the woodlands, and paramour of the damned. She walks to the gates of Malfeas, over which presides what can only be Ligier. The image forms a loose triptych, its 15[22:18] components arranged against as much as alongside one another - the eye is drawn again and again to the featureless darkness behind that gate. 15[22:21] The birds grow restive, hooting anxiously and flapping their wings a bit. The doves flail more and more, and when their wingtips brush they turn on one another, beating their wings against their cellmates in a frenzy. 15[22:22] Daizo can just see Deled's heart fluttering rapidly behind his exposed ribcage. 15[22:25] Caxi: [22:26] 10Caxi, Caxi, what did you barter away to gain this power? 10Years of instincts and training are telling him that this must stop, but… Deled will surely die. And can he, now, turn Caxi away? 15[22:27] The birds begin to scream, a terrible noise that mutes the sound of all their hollow bones snapping, turning it into something like the crunch of fresh snow beneath a boot. Fluid trickles from their eyes, their beaks, appearing quite black, like blood beneath the moon on a starless night. [22:28] 07Dryas: "This is why we need a plan. We can't act opportunistically and expect to come out alive. We have two enemies - more in fact, but for now just two, separated by a great distance. How do we strike at both? Or, failing that, how do we strike a blow that isn't felt until it's too late to avoid?" 15[22:30] 15[22:30] Slick and blood-streaked like newborn babes, the doves leap from their skins, blackening by the second, no air passing through their throats to give weight to their screams. 15[22:30] "Show me the DRAGON!" 15[22:31] All at once the lights in that little room go dark. [22:31] 14Piu has an ideological disagreement here about the value of opportunism, but that's for another day. "Do you wish to replace Lena as Moray's contact long term, since I get the sense that is what we're talking about, or upend the apple cart? Because if it's the former, we need to take care of her before his ship arrives." 15[22:33] Daizo sees nothing. Daizo hears nothing. He has no sensation at all - not of the clothes against his skin, the boots against the ground, or his body in space. He is mind alone - suspended, unshackled will, cradled in something fathomless. [22:35] 07Dryas is very quiet and insistent in what she says next: "I cannot live with what that vision of what becomes of them, Anathema or no. Skullstone pretends at civilization but conceals something horrifying beyond belief..." [22:37] 14Piu shifts in the water, eyes closed. "And that sounds like a desire for the latter. We can't form a plan until you tame your own mind, babe. How hard are we going?" [22:37] 07Dryas: "It's almost like... we have to pull the table cloth out from under the crystal decanter so swiftly that it won't topple over and shatter into ten thousand pieces. Anything less, and the Guild and Skullstone will go back to doing it all over again." [22:37] "Hmmmmm..." 15[22:39] Reality snaps back into place like a bubble popping. The candles are burning -- indeed, it's not clear they ever went out at all. Daizo is there, beside a cage empty save for a smear of tar stuck all over with loose white feathers. Caxi holds the dagger over Deled's open torso, gripping the blade with all her strength as her own blood runs black into the cavity, sizzling faintly as it 15[22:39] falls drop by drop upon his heart. [22:41] 10The shadow of every creature which has ever lived, beyond life, beyond death. Is this the power to give life, and take it? 15[22:41] Limbs push themselves from Deled's oozing stumps like baby chicks fighting their way out of their eggs. Blood-smeared, sinuous, muscle winding like cable over bone and tendon, with skin seeming to thicken like an afterthought, like condensation on a glass. Each of them is yellow, scaled, and taloned - the claws of a bird. 15[22:43] Caxi grunts in pain, squeezing harder and harder, until the blood is a steady trickle. The wound she cut starts to knit closed on its own, thin meaty fibers reaching out and tangling together like the fingers of reunited lovers. Then the man's broad chest is bare, and clean -- and whole. 15[22:43] Caxi doubles over, gasping, panting. [22:44] 07Dryas, pondering: "We know the other ships moving the Anathema around. We know their final destination. Maybe Lena can give us the rest of the clairty we need to completely destroy them." [22:44] 4Piu: "Two ways to do that. There's the seduction route, but I don't think it's the best one here. Better might be the two of you having a family catch-up chat, and me raiding her room looking for the ledgers while she's away." [22:45] 10Daizo's beside her, bearing her up. There's nothing, words won't come.  [22:46] 07Dryas: "We'll do that. Then we can decide whether to ignore, confront, replace her... or what else we have to do." 15[22:47] Caxi lets go completely in his arms, nestling herself as close to him as she physically can, gasping in pain and relief. [22:47] 4Piu: "Whew! Sounds good. Schedule it and lemme know. I am, of course, available for crimes at the sound of a chime." [22:49] 10Finally: "What did it cost you?" [22:50] 07Dryas: "We should call on her as soon as possible. I'm nearly done, when will you be ready?" [22:50] 4Piu: "Gimme ten to get changed and then I can shadow you. You, uh, have any idea where her quarters are?" 15[22:53] Caxi coughs a laugh into Daizo's chest, where her face is buried. She turns to rest her cheek in the same spot so she can say, "Life. Innocence. A future. Nothing that belonged to me to begin with." [22:55] "Not yet," 07Dryas replies. 15[22:55] She breaks away from him enough to begin to clean her hand. "The neomah is outside. It'll be able to make those limbs passable. But before I open the door, there is a question I need you to answer." She looks him directly in the eye, her violet irises tinted so deeply that they appear almost black. Must be the light. "Who is in this room, Tepet Daizo? Who do you see? What do you 15[22:55] see?" [22:55] 4Piu: "Shouldn't be too hard to track down." 15[22:56] "Is it two magicians and a mystery? Or is it two shikari and a monster?" [23:03] 10Daizo meets the gaze. A moment's silence, then: "If I were still the man they trained me to be, there would be two corpses and a shikari in this room right now." [23:03] "I don't know what the hell I am anymore. But a magician seems like a good start." 15[23:04] Caxi's good hand caresses Daizo's face as she contemplates his reply, before reaching behind his neck to pull him down for a long, deep kiss. [23:05] 07Not long afterwards, Dryas is looking fresher than ever. She certainly feels fresher than she has in months. Finally got all the salt out of her roots. Time for a social call. [23:05] 14And Piu's nearby. [23:07] 10If this is damnation, then damnation isn't so bad. 15[23:07] Piu can tell pretty easily which room is Lena's, because it's the one with Cynis guards on it. [23:07] 14Ah. 15[23:09] Dryas finds Lena downstairs in the banquet all, which has been converted into a sort of reception area with buffet tables and an open bar. There's a guy on stage tuning a six string and playing some experimental chords, and a number of chattering nobles and chittering undead servants going to and fro with drinks in hand. Lena herself is holding a kind of court, huge cigar clamped 15[23:09] between her teeth as she bids all the women at the table with her to take a drink in unison. 15[23:11] Lena waves Dryas over as she walks in. "Babe! Babe! Come get drunk with us." [23:13] 14The balcony looks like the way. The guard moves back and forth, but does he appear to actually enter the Cynis's bedchambers on his route? If not, it should be a simple matter of a distraction while hanging under the balcony by snapping The Chain like a whip at something on the far end, then flipping up and past the guard into the room while their back is turned. Absolutely punishing [23:13] 14on her lats, yes, but you might have noticed: Piu works out. 15[23:13] As Dryas approaches, Lena calls: "May I introduce the woman of the moment to the woman of the hour? Cynis Dryas, the people's champion! Mox Lapis, the Crown Princess and bride to be." [23:13] 14If there's nothing to knock over, she can debase herself to yes, literally tossing a coin of some sort. 15[23:13] The woman immediately to Lena's right looks up sheepishly, as if the attention of a stranger is intrusive. 15[23:14] Mox Lapis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4rhJx2YPo8 - No one compares to you, but there's no you... except in my dreams tonight. 15[23:15] The man with the six-string meets Dryas's eyes for just a moment, and he gives her a playful wink before he starts in on a song... the same song she hears in her mind as she beholds him. 15[23:15] Cardelin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXxn4BOTM6U - I feel restless here; I can't sit still. Everybody at this party's got their fingers in the till. [23:18] 07Dryas glides towards the group, smiling effervescently. "Your Highness, it was my honor - and the honor of Commodore Ratel, the crew of our vessel, and, of course, the Realm." 07Dryas bows, displaying exactly the proper level of deference a member of the Scarlet Dynasty should show an honored barbarian queen. "And cousin Lena! So good to see you!" 07Bises! 15[23:18] Caxi says Deled's going to need to rest until at least morning, so we can have more people in the room to question him. The temple's residents are totally scarce as Daizo swears he feels the unseen neomah brush past him, but Seiri and Garnet are upstairs on prayer-rugs, looking up in unison as the magicians come into view. [23:25] 10Daizo: "It's done. He'll be a new man when he awakens." 10The local monks may have to purify the entire temple grounds after this. given the nature of the healing. 15[23:26] Seiri: "Oh thank goodness! You're a real life-saver, Lady Caxi." 15[23:26] Caxi: "Let's not say things we can't take back, dear. Now, come! Come come! Both of you are badly underdressed for a party." 15[23:26] And like that, aside from the hand Caxi keeps in her pocket, it's like none of it ever happened. 15[23:32] Piu is able to swing in while the guard's back is turned, landing neatly in the room. It doesn't look like Lena's in here a lot, but there's some stuff to look through - letters to read, cocaine to steal, and so forth. What's she looking for? 15[23:34] Dryas takes a seat beside the crown princess as Lena beckons an undead server for another round of Divine Winds - a popular Pangu party drink consisting of Pneuman wodka, Pangu orange liqueur, and Chiaroscuro lime juice, named the north-to-south trajectory of its ingredients, like a gust from the Pole of Air. [23:34] 14Drugs stay, sadly. Letters can get a look last. Primarily we're looking for hidden caches. These won't be in the room itself, probably, unless Lena is truly an idiot; if a landlord shows you a neat secret place to stash your valuables in the room, they're showing you a deposit box for you to put that stuff so they can steal them. So we're looking for traveling luggage with false [23:34] 14bottoms, standing furniture that maybe doesn't quite fit; anything that might contain information Lena's too unserious to actually care about but that she knows she needs to be able to produce on, say, an hour's request. 15[23:35] Lena's pretty hammered, but Lapis isn't drinking - she seems positively riddled with jitters. Terrified, even. Every sudden movement draws her eye, even half the room away, and she only seems to relax insofar as she feels like no one's eyes are on her, which is almost never. 15[23:38] There's nothing like that in here that Piu can find... except, wait. On a lark she checks the one place she wrote off instantly, the snuff box full of cocaine. *There* she finds a false bottom, and in it a single silver key on a ring. [23:38] 07Oh, this is going to be a 07great07 party. [23:39] 14Charcoal and paper give her a perfect and precise rub of the key from both sides. [23:39] 10Daizo's looking a bit scuffed himself, what with all the back-and-forth between the temple and the ship and now up to the Inner City. As they approach the venue, onlookers shoot him more and more quizzical looks. Since, yes, huge guy with wings and all. [23:40] 14How intricate is the teething? Can this be reproduced with sufficient mundane expertise or does she need to steal the thing? She'll get a trace of the shape of the key-shaft as well in case that's bespoke too rather than a tube. [23:40] 14Once that's done, she probably has enough time to take the key and start trying it on locks she can find around the room... 15[23:40] Caxi took the time to change, though she's made no comment on Daizo's attire. Does he feel underdressed with Caxi, in her shimmering low-cut evening gown and elbow-length silk gloves, fluttering a jade-accented fan, on his arm? 15[23:41] Doesn't seem to fit anything in here. [23:42] 14Well, we know where it is now and can presumably cast a copy with the right expertise. Piu will replace it and, assuming there's nothing else, glance at the letters before absconding. [23:42] 07Dryas will give the Princess a little room as she slams a Divine Wind down. "So, cousin, I've heard that Falen is on safari out of Wu Jian! You don't think she'll crash what's going to be the biggest party anywhere near the Pole of Water?" [23:45] 10Well, there's a little bit of incongruity. But there's something he's practiced a bit during the voyage from Mionzi, and now seems like as good a time as any to show off. In a square a short distance away, he'll break off for a moment and wave the others back a bit.  15[23:47] The letters are varied - it seems Lena is a prolific correspondent. Many letters from favor-currying members of the House, detailing various boasts and debaucheries, and coy hints about future business deals if she keeps her faithful correspondents in mind. A letter from Ragara Takoye borders on the graphic and ends with an abrupt entreaty for more funding. And a letter on *very* 15[23:47] luxurious paper, with gorgeous handwriting, warning Lena to be on the lookout for Daana'd's Defiance, and to petition a magician to send back a message at once if she hears any word. 15[23:48] The letter is signed, Respectfully yours, HRH Cynis Falen. 15[23:48] Lena: "Ugh, again? I thought it was the East's turn to be graced with her presence." [23:48] 14Well. She's had what, three hours since they've landed? She's had time to do it if she's responsible at all. But Dryas needs to know. 15[23:49] "I guess with the unpleasantness..." [23:49] 14After all, if Ratel's leverage is that she's going to call Falen... 15[23:49] Daizo's got his space. [23:49] 14...Well, Ratel should know too. Piu wants to copy the letter. [23:51] 14Once that's done and everything's back where it should be -- Lena probably won't be in condition to pay too close attention, but Piu's a professional -- it's time to go. [23:52] 10Daizo concentrates for a moment. Lit lamps in the square flare day-bright for a moment, and then the flames are sucked in towards Daizo—a halo of fire surrounds him. The fire flares yellow, to white, to blue, and for a moment Daizo is engulfed in a pyre. When the fire fades, it doesn't fade completely. Embers dance around him, his old clothes burned away and replaced with a striking crimson-and-gold formal outfit. Even his [23:52] 10 wings are a little reminiscient of the glow of Hamoji's molten core.  15[23:53] Coming from outside the banquet hall, Dryas hears the fwoosh of flame and a series of awed gasps and then, finally, a delighted laugh it takes her a moment to realize is Caxi's. 15[23:53] The guard on Lena's balcony cranes over the railing to see it, so Piu can get out all but effortlessly, and even has time to admire Daizo and Caxi before she vanishes. [23:55] 10Daizo offers his arm again. The fire won't burn anyone—just yet. [23:55] "Oh, now it's a party," 07Dryas exclaims as Caxi enters the hall. 07Was she just laughing? 15[23:55] Caxi takes his arm after first grabbing his ass in full view of everyone. [23:56] 14Ha. [23:56] 14But now it's time to rush back to her room and 4change into something inappropriate for the rehearsal. 15[23:56] Maybe it's the light of Daizo's anima, or the fancy clothes, but Caxi has a different air about her than Dryas has ever seen. [23:56] 4V'Neef Piu, and her dress, will be by shortly. [23:57] 10Two can pinch at that game. 15[23:58] Caxi grins, and when Dryas catches her eye she raises her brows just a bit as if to say, I'm as surprised as you are. 15[23:58] Cynis Caxi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFOzayDpWoI - So what would an angel say? The devil wants to know. 15[00:02] NEXT TIME: A little Knight music